The USGBC Massachusetts Chapter "promotes the design, construction, and operation of sustainable buildings and communities in Massachusetts..." Here, we showcase what the community is up to: who we are and what we do.

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Monday, July 7, 2014

Residential Committee Presentation on LEED v4 Changes from Will D'Arrigo

By Peter Sun, Residential Green Building CommitteeDuring
June 9th
USGBC meeting Will D’Arrigo from Conservation Services Group gave members
a comprehensive review of LEED for Homes v4. Many changes were made to
the latest version of LEED for Homes and members had an opportunity to
discuss these changes.

The
effects of the adjustments to the LEED rating system has yet to be
seen but overall LEED seems to be raising the bar on sustainable
development compared to code driven development. For example, the Location and Transportation credit category now includes a prerequisite on floodplain
avoidance; presumably, to address flooding and sea level rise. In
category Location and Transportation (LP), prerequisite 1: prohibits
building on FEMA 100 year flood plain unless the building is
elevated. If the building is outside the United States then you must use a
local equivalent program. The 100 year flood does not mean the
frequency is every 100 years, rather it means that in any given year
there is 1% chance of it occurring. According to FEMA, flooding is
the most destructive natural disaster type in America. More recently,
Hurricane Arthur not only delayed July 4th
fireworks celebration but also caused flash flooding in Westport,
Dartmouth, Fairhaven, Freetown, Wareham, and Plymouth.
Below is a flood map displaying flood zones in Boston.

Another
change to the LEED rating system was the Energy and Atmosphere category prerequisite: Minimum Energy Performance. The new prerequisite
required newly built homes to meet Energy Star V.3. for Homes, have at
least one Energy Star qualified appliance installed in each unit, and to thermally insulate ducts. The discussion on Energy Star Homes was
lively, as member Caitriona Cooke fromConservation
Services Group
highlighted the fact that there has been a drop in Energy Star for
Homes certification since it upgraded from v2.5 to v3 due to more
stringent requirements. This is of importance to LEED because in
LEED for Homes v4 Energy and Atmosphere credit category it requires Energy Star
for Homes v3 & a HERS rating of 70. The discussion mentioned how builders
reacted to the step up in requirements for Energy Star for Homes v3.
Other changes mentioned include rating system selection and point
floor structure.

Other
changes to the rating systems were introduced and each member got an
opportunity to express their views and opinions.

The next Residential Green Building Committee meeting will be July 14th at 5:45pm at 281 Summer Street in Boston. See you there!